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‘Marie. I’m so sorry.’
‘Don’t be silly. It’s not your fault.’ Marie took Lisa in her arms, hugging her tight, and Thea saw a tear roll down Lisa’s cheek. Someone brought a seat for her, and the two women sat together, Lisa’s arm around Marie’s shoulders.
Lucas waited with them until Dave got out of surgery. When a nurse came to collect Marie, saying she’d be allowed a few minutes with Dave, she insisted that Lisa should go too, and the two women made their way to the ICU together.
Thea didn’t move as the group of work colleagues who’d been waiting for news dispersed. Lucas was sitting, his legs stretched out in front of him, showing no inclination to do anything either.
‘We must do this again some time.’ He didn’t speak until they were alone.
‘Yeah.’ Thea knew what he meant. She always had with Lucas.
‘Not the serious injury part.’
‘Clearly. Or the drunken driver part.’ It was the realisation that even though they were both doctors, even though they’d done practically everything else together, they’d never done this. Never saved a man’s life.
She could have just sat here with him all night, sharing that quiet satisfaction. Instead, Thea got to her feet. ‘Is that lift home still on offer?’
‘Yeah. Of course.’
CHAPTER SIX
THE WEEK DIDN’T let up on them. As soon as the Mantoux tests were all administered, there was the work of seeing everyone again to check the results. A hard, raised area at the site of the injection, which measured more than ten millimetres across, was classed as a reaction to the tuberculin test and required further investigation.
The results were good for most. But so far Thea and Lucas had seen two teachers and six pupils whose tests had been positive. Each was given a thorough examination to check whether there was any sign of active tuberculosis, and X-rays and blood tests were taken.
At three o’clock Thea took a moment for lunch at her desk. Which meant that she was looking straight at Lucas, whose desk had been pushed up against hers, directly opposite, to accommodate the growing team. She was just debating whether to concentrate on her sandwich or watch him work when the phone rang.
‘I’ll get it. Eat your lunch.’ He reached across and hooked the receiver up with one finger. ‘Lucas West.’
He listened intently and then nodded. ‘Okay, we’ll see her now.’
‘I thought we were finished?’ Thea laid her sandwich down on the napkin in front of her.
‘It’s the girl who didn’t show up for her appointment. I got the team secretary to ring the school and apparently one of the teachers has found her and brought her down here. I suppose we’d better see her before she tries to make a break for it. Want me to go?’
‘No, that’s okay. Finish your notes. And don’t touch my sandwich.’
‘Right. Finish your sandwich. Don’t touch my notes.’
‘Yeah. Funny.’
When Thea entered the consulting room the girl swung round in her seat to face her. She looked much older than sixteen. Her blonde hair showed signs of dark roots and her school uniform had been adjusted, the skirt shorter and the tie knotted three inches lower than it was meant to be. Thea could identify with the tie at least. Whoever had thought it was a good idea to make sixteen-year-old girls wear ties to school was just as mistaken now as when she’d been that age.
‘Isobel Grant?’
The girl’s gaze was cool and calculating. ‘Yes?’
‘I’m Dr Coleman. Would you like your teacher to be here while I examine you?’ Clearly Isobel’s parents weren’t here. It never failed to depress Thea that that wasn’t particularly unusual.
Isobel pressed her lips together. ‘No. I’m sixteen, I can make my own mind up about things.’
She knew the law, then. At sixteen she was considered competent to make medical decisions for herself. Even if she was little more than a child in some respects and a little parental support might have been nice.
Thea sat down on one of the chairs beside Isobel. ‘You know why you’ve been tested?’
Isobel gave her a look of mild derision. ‘Yes. And if the test swells up into a lump, I might have TB. But it hasn’t.’
‘Okay. I’m still going to need to see it, though.’ Thea shrugged. ‘Just to confirm.’
